THE Northern Ireland Secretary, Sir Patrick Mayhew, last night said that every terrorist attack reaffirmed the need to dispose of weapons because they "destroy hard won trust and entrench bitterness".
On the second reading of the Northern Ireland Arms Decommissioning Bill in the House of Commons, he urged all political parties to give "high priority" to the conclusions in the Mitchell Report on decommissioning.
As a "template" for the Bill, Sir Patrick acknowledged the guidelines set out in the Mitchell Report, which he said provided the British government with "a context in which further discussion on decommissioning could progress".
The government's Bill, which is designed to provide a statutory foundation for decommissioning, would "reflect" the Mitchell principles and allow decommissioning to proceed.
Central to the Bill is the concept of a "tightly defined and narrow amnesty", which in effect would last for one year but could be extended by 12 month periods for a maximum of five years.
However, Sir Patrick stressed that the amnesty period, during which firearms, ammunition and explosives could be handed in would apply only to those who adhered to the strict terms of the decommissioning scheme and only referred to offences mentioned by the Bill. Clause 1 also sets out the need for a degree of "flexibility" to be built into the scheme "maximising our ability to make, amend, withdraw or replace" legislation, "in the light of the situation on the ground".
A further 10 clauses to the Bill set out the government's position on issues dealing with information gathered in the course of decommissioning and "provisions for one or more specified ways of dealing with firearms, ammunition and explosives" raised in paragraph 44 of the Mitchell Report.
Welcoming the Bill "subject to reservations", the Ulster Unionist leader, Mr David Trimble, said it was "desirable" for decommissioning legislation to be put on the statute book, "so that the opportunity is there for the process to move forward if there is such a commitment.
"We need to see words, actions and circumstances which are consistent to peaceful means and the democratic process. If, as is likely, there is no commitment to peaceful means and the democratic process, then the detailed provisions of this legislation become somewhat academic," he said. Mr Trimble insisted that arms decommissioning must not be "kicked into the long grass" and he brought forward the point again that there was a need to involve an international verification commission to tackle the problem of the handing in of weapons and their destruction.
He said: "We will not be satisfied by reliance on words or statements of the Irish Government or its servants or agents in terms of decommissioning."
The Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlem, also gave her party's support to the government's proposal, calling it a "crucial measure designed to build confidence." But Dr Mowlem questioned the courage of the IRA to call a ceasefire and reflected on the positions of the political parties a year ago when she said the issue of decommissioning was not high on their agenda.
"The absence of a small step began the process of retreat on all sides. The situation now is one of little trust and no confidence," she said.